Chicago's Inspector General has leveled serious allegations against the office of Democrat Mayor Brandon Johnson, accusing it of obstructing an investigation into the mayor's purported clandestine collection of thousands of dollars in complimentary gifts from special interest groups.
According to Breitbart, the investigation, detailed in a report titled Advisory Concerning Gifts Accepted on Behalf of the City, has unearthed that Johnson has not been accurately recording the numerous high-priced gifts he has received. Some of these gifts were reportedly stored in what city hall employees have dubbed the "gift room," a location they attempted to bar the Inspector General from accessing, as reported by Austin Berg, a member of the Illinois Policy Institute.
Current municipal regulations mandate the mayor to seek approval from the city council to accept certain gifts, a step Johnson appears to have bypassed on several occasions. However, an "unwritten rule" by the Board of Ethics has permitted mayors to accept gifts without city council approval, provided the office maintains a "log book" of the gifts, accessible to the public upon request.
In an attempt to gain access to this log book, representatives from the Inspector General's office, posing as ordinary citizens, approached the mayor's office, only to be denied. Subsequent attempts, including a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, were also rebuffed. It was only after an official demand was made that the mayor's office granted access to the log.
The official records revealed that some of these clandestine gifts were kept in the mayor's office, while others were concealed in the aforementioned "gift room." When the Inspector General's office requested to inspect this "gift room," they were denied entry by the mayor's staff and the city's law office, despite the city's rules stipulating that these records should be made available to the Inspector General's office upon demand.
Berg quoted the rule, stating, "Each departments premises, equipment, personnel, books, records and papers shall be made available as soon as practicable to the inspector general."
Eventually, the Inspector General did gain access, and the quantity of gifts discovered was startling. The lavish freebies bestowed upon the mayor included items such as Hugo Boss cuff links, a personalized Mont Blanc pen, a Gucci tote bag and crossbody bag, a Givenchy bag, a Kate Spade red purse, Carrucci size 14 burgundy mens shoes, along with electronics, and other collectible items.
The Inspector General's report highlighted the alarming situation, stating, "When gifts are changing handsperhaps literallyin a windowless room in City Hall, there is no opportunity for oversight and public scrutiny of the propriety of such gifts, the identities and intentions of the gift-givers, or what it means for gifts like whiskey, jewelry, handbags, and size 14 mens shoes to be accepted on behalf of the City.'"
Berg further commented on the situation, stating that the exchanges of gifts, hidden from public view, are indicative of the clandestine dealings that plague Chicago. He wrote, "This story is about so much more than just Johnson and these gifts. This entire episodethe unwritten arrangement, the secret logs, the stonewalling from city lawyersisnt a fluke. Its how Chicago operates."
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